Masquerading politics : kinship, gender, and ethnicity in a Yoruba town / John Thabiti Willis.

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In West Africa, especially among Yoruba people, masquerades have the power to kill enemies, appoint kings, and grant fertility. John Thabiti Willis takes a close look at masquerade traditions in the Yoruba town of Otta, exploring transformations in performers, performances, and the institutional str...

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Bibliographic Details
Uniform Title:African expressive cultures.
Main Author: Willis, John Thabiti, 1976- (Author)
Language:English
Published: Bloomington, Indiana : Indiana University Press, [2018]
Series:African expressive cultures.
Subjects:
Yoruba (African people) > Rites and ceremonies.
Yoruba (African people) > Nigeria > Otta > History.
Otta (Nigeria) > History.
Yoruba (African people) > Politics and government.
Masks, Yoruba > Nigeria > Otta > History.
Masquerades > Nigeria > Otta > History.
Egúngún (Cult) > Nigeria > Otta.
Gelede (Yoruba rite) > Nigeria > Otta.
Egúngún (Cult)
Gelede (Yoruba rite)
Masks, Yoruba.
Masquerades.
Yoruba (African people)
Nigeria > Otta.
History.
Genre:
History.
Physical Description:xiii, 198 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm.
Format: Book
Contents:
  • Introduction
  • The early history of Otta and the origins of Egungun and Gelede
  • "Children" and "wives" in the politics of the Oyo empire during the era of the Atlantic slave trade
  • The emergence of new warriors, wards, and masquerades : the Otta kingdom during the era of imperial collapse
  • "A thing to govern the town" : gendered masquerades and the politics of the chiefs and the monarchy in the rebuilding of a town, 1848-1859
  • Wives, warriors, and masks: kinship, gender, and ethnicity in Otta, 1871-1928
  • Conclusion : Egungun and Gelede at Otta today.